Truck Parking

TRUCK PARKING WORKSHOP

In early May, 2018, the Eastern Transportation Coalition organized a workshop dedicated to better understand the unique issues and needs surrounding truck parking and discuss potential solutions. Representatives from the 17 state departments of transportation (DOTs) that comprise the Coalition participated, and addressed the workshop’s four key objectives:

• Share recent activities to understand what is working and where;
• Develop a list of truck parking attributes necessary to create viable solutions;
• Understand the positive and negative aspects of various approaches to addressing truck parking needs; and
• Gain a better understanding of how changes in regulations and technology could affect truck parking.

The Truck Parking Workshop built on related work in this area including the Coalition’s experience in developing and implementing a real time truck parking availability system and building on the work of the National Coalition on Truck Parking in examining best practices and strategies to address truck parking. By bringing together Coalition members exclusively, the workshop was an opportunity for participants to share experiences honestly and to ask and answer the “hard questions.” By focusing on DOTs with operating authority, the initial discussion focused on real-world approaches within the corridor.  The Eastern Transportation Coalition continues to have an important role to play to support its member agencies in this discussion. This includes coordinating and sharing data and best practices throughout the corridor, and providing a forum for the various agencies and stakeholders to interact to discuss truck parking challenges in general, while recognizing some of the unique challenges for truck parking along the East Coast.  The following materials are provided for reference from this workshop:

Truck Parking Workshop Final Report including Results. Add link

I-95 Truck Parking Workshop – “One Page” Summary Reference Document

Truck Parking Workshop Executive PowerPoint – Opening Session summary

Additional Truck Parking Activities Conducted Post-Workshop:

Following the Truck Parking Workshop, based on discussion and needs identified by participants, additional research was undertaken and reference materials were developed to provide additional information and resources for Coalition members.  The following documents were developed:

Truck Parking Primer:  This document is intended to serve as a quick resource guide to educate State DOTs. Operating and planning agencies and other public and private stakeholders, on the important issue of truck parking, identifies some of the needs and innovative solutions, costs and funding examples and continuing challenges and opportunities. View the Truck Parking Primer Report Here.

The Eastern Transportation Coalition: National Coalition on Truck Parking Synthesis.  This document serves as a quick reference guide to the findings, summarizes questions and comments discussed during the December 6th webinar, and highlights NCTP references to best practices already occurring in the Corridor or where a best practice from other municipalities, states, and organizations may be applicable to Corridor Coalition members. View the NCTP Synthesis Report Here

The Eastern Transportation Coalition Recent State Activities Summary.This report provides an overview of recent truck parking activity in the Corridor, summarizes funding sources available for truck parking activities, and expands on best practices identified by the National Coalition on Truck Parking (NCTP)  and associated working groups as discussed in the “National Coalition on Truck Parking Synthesis” memorandum with particular emphasis on strategies/solutions with potential for transferability to the East Coast states. This information can help DOTs identify funding opportunities for truck parking, better understand potential long-term costs, and conceptualize some of the larger issues involved in developing truck parking. View the Recent State Activities Memo Here

The Eastern Transportation Coalition received funding from FHWA to pilot and demonstrate a real time truck parking information system. The Coalition conducted initial testing of detection equipment (cameras, pavement sensors) at locations in Maryland and Virginia at public rest areas. Ultimately, pavement sensors were selected for detection of trucks in spaces and assessing utilization of spaces with over 95% accuracy. Examining options for dissemination of truck parking data to truckers was also undertaken in this project, with use of both a pre-trip sign on website with hands free auto call back capability.

The pilot demonstration project period concluded on April 30, 2018 and the system, having been installed at 5 Virginia sites, was turned over to the Virginia DOT for continued operation, demonstrating system viability, transferability, modularity, scalability, and adaptability.

Visit VDOT to see the system in action:   http://www.511virginia.org/ (Click on the Truck Parking item on the left-hand side of the map).

Overall, the project proved to be beneficial to state departments of transportation, truckers/users/stakeholders, and project operators, developers and designers. Read the Demonstration Project Evaluation and Results, along with Lessons Learned.

A number of supporting documents were developed during the span of this Truck Parking Project. Click on the links below for further information.

• System Functionality
• System Requirements
• System Design
• Concept of Operations

The project also identified further work that might be explored in the corridor,

• Elucidate why truckers are stopping and where they are stopping through resources that identify why and where trucks stop (i.e. for staging, hours of service)
• Identify best communications media/equipment with the truckers, such as placement of VMS/DMS parking availability alerts.
• Convene public agency stakeholders to share lessons learned from this project and to review findings and recommendations from this project, with particular focus on solutions recognizing the geographic and operating realities for states on the East Coast and building on/leveraging the work of FHWA Office of Freight Management and Operations’ National Coalition on Truck Parking .This was accomplished through a Truck Parking Workshop (see tab Truck Parking Workshop and related efforts) that was convened by the Coalition  in March 2018, which:
  • Explored with Corridor state DOTs opportunities to expand truck parking capacity examining capacity solutions used by other state DOTS that may be transferrable to the Corridor
  • Explored what communication/data needs may be required to improve information sharing to truckers;
  • Explored how cross-state communications might be used for long-distance truckers, particularly for cross-border travel
  • Identified follow on work to convene a Truck Parking Symposium to: Engage private industry, planning organizations, economic development agencies and other public and private stakeholders, along with DOTs/Operating Agencies, to examine alternative solutions to address truck parking needs (i.e. role of shippers, receivers in addressing truck parking needs)

Webinars

• March 13, 2020 – Inside the MAASTO Truck Parking Information Management System Project Webinar
  • Presentation with Audio
  • Slides only
  • Q & A Summary

Other Links

• FHWA Freight Management and Operations Office
• Overdrive Magazine
• U.S. Freight Economy Overview
• National Statistics and Maps
• Freight Information by State
• National Coalition on Truck Parking Overview and Working Groups
• National Coalition on Truck Parking’s Advocacy Resources Released with Ease-of-Use in Mind article – https://www.overdriveonline.com/national-coalition-on-truck-parkings-advocacy-resources-released-with-ease-of-use-in-mind/